Business

Pakistan to ‘complete IMF programme’

Published

1 year ago

Farwa

Premier directs economic team to increase power generation.
PM Shehbaz emphasises need to reduce circular debt.
Differences between IMF and Pakistan still persist.

Amid uncertainty over the delay in the 9th review of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Wednesday rejected all news reports, saying that Pakistan would complete the programme.

Pakistan and the IMF have been holding talks virtually but differences still persist over tax collection targets, and non-starter energy reforms including hiking of gas tariff, rising circular debt, and expenditure overrun, making consensus harder to strike on a staff-level agreement in the context of the 9th review under $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF).

PM Shehbaz, during an important meeting held on the economic situation, directed the authorities concerned to provide support to the exporters in order to increase exports and manage twin deficits.

وزیراعظم شہبازشریف کی زیرصدارت معاشی صورتحال کے بارے میں اہم اجلاس
عالمی مالیاتی فنڈ (آئی۔ ایم۔ایف) کے ساتھ موجودہ پروگرام پورا کرے گی، برآمدات میں اضافے کے لئے ایکسپورٹرز کی بھرپور مدد کریں گے اور تمام ممکنہ سہولیات فراہم کی جائیں گی۔ pic.twitter.com/A35zaQJl6o
— PML(N) (@pmln_org) December 14, 2022

The premier said when the Pakistan Democratic Movement-led government came into power in April after ousting then-prime minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence motion, the economy was struggling miserably.

“We stabilised the economy by working hard,” he said, directing the economic team to take measures to complete the IMF programme and manage the rising current account deficit.

In line with the concerns raised by the Washington-based lender, PM Shehbaz gave directives that the relevant ministries should work on energy policies. He added that power generation should be increased while the circular debt should be brought down.

It should be noted that the IMF had asked Pakistan for hiking the gas tariff because the government kept the gas prices unchanged which resulted in increasing the circular debt of the gas sector.

Although the government made plans for improving the gas sector no progress was witnessed in the power sector.

The monster of circular debt in the power sector went up to Rs2.4 trillion and all targets agreed with the IMF for reducing it on a monthly and quarterly basis could not be achieved.

The subsidy on tube-wells alone would cause an increase of Rs200 billion in the accumulated circular debt in the ongoing financial year.

Business

Pakistan’s gold prices continue to decline.

Published

28 mins ago

Farwa

The price of ten grams of 24 carat gold dropped by Rs 1,201 to Rs 205,418 from Rs 206,619, while the price of ten grams of 22 carat gold dropped to Rs 188,300 from Rs 189,400, according to the All Sindh Sarafa Jewellers Association.

Silver, priced at Rs. 2,620 per tola and Rs. 2,254.80 per ten grams, stayed at that level. As reported by the organization, the price of gold dropped by $11 on the global market, to $2,297 from $2,308.

Business

Price of LPG “slashed” by Rs. 20 per kilogram

Published

31 mins ago

Farwa

Sources claim that LPG rates have been lowered by Rs 20, making the cost per kilogram drop from Rs 280 to Rs 260.

It is noteworthy to remark that the costs of LPG were reduced by Rs 20 per kilogram earlier, resulting in a total reduction of Rs 40 per kilogram within a few weeks.

The price of liquefied petroleum gas for the month of May 2024 was lowered by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on April 30.

The LPG tariffs were lowered by Rs 11.88 to Rs 238.46 per kilogram in accordance with the OGRA’s notice. On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, the new rates will go into effect.

In April of last year, the price per kilogram of LPG was Rs 250.34. pricing reduction of Rs 140.18 has resulted in a new pricing for home LPG cylinders set for May 2024 of Rs 2813.85.

The OGRA reported a drop in liquefied petroleum gas pricing in April. The price of LPG is now Rs 250.34 per kg instead of Rs 256.78 due to a reduction of Rs 6.44 per kg.

The price of the household cylinder was fixed at Rs 2954.03 for the month of April, down from Rs 3030.12, a decrease of Rs 76.9.

Business

ADB delegation stops by FBR headquarters

Published

37 mins ago

Farwa

Senior Director ADB Tariq Niazi oversaw the expedition, which also involved Sana Masood, Farzana Noshab, and Senior Public Sector Management Specialist Laisiasa Tora. The meeting included presentations from economists as well, according to an FBR press release.

The officers focused on structural and policy adjustments as they discussed the Domestic Resource Mobilization Program’s implementation at the meeting.

$300 million was given to the Pakistani government by ADB in December 2023 as a result of the hard work and dedication of FBR. Better laws, regulations, and institutional capability for the FBR were established by Sub-Program I.

With the $300 million in funding provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to the Government of Pakistan in December 2023, the delegation conveyed satisfaction with the program’s effective launch.

The FBR also underlined how crucial digitization is to recording the economy and boosting productivity in a sustainable way.

In order to promote the Government of Pakistan’s Digital Tax Administration Project, both parties decided to look into measures to improve their cooperation.